"Write all that We have revealed unto thee with the ink of light upon the tablet of thy spirit" The Hidden Words, Bahá'u'lláh Bahá´í Scripture The Báb   Bahá'u'lláh   'Abdul -Bahá   Some facts Bahá´ís consider the Writings of the Báb, Bahá'u'lláh and 'Abdul-Bahá as divinely inspired scripture. 'Abdul-Bahá's grandson, Shoghi Effendi was authorized by 'Abdul-Bahá to provide authorative interpretations of the scriptures and to lead the Bahá´í community. Today the elected nine-member Universal House of Justice is authorized to lead the community and make decisions about Bahá´í laws. There are over 500 books by over 24 publishers in the English language. We are lucky to have many writings by the Báb and Bahá'u'lláh, 'Abdul-Bahá and Shoghi Effendi. Most of these were written in Arabic and Persian, although Shoghi Effendi wrote several books in English. Many of the scriptures have been translated into English, Dutch and other languages, but the translation work is still far from completed. The Báb The Báb wrote extensively in his own hand or dicatated to his companion and secretary, Husayn Yazdí, one of the Letters of the Living (Title for the first 18 followers). Although persecution led to the loss of many of his writings, widespread copying has ensured the survival of many manuscripts. Little of this is accessible yet, even in the original Persian and Arabic. His major book is the book of laws, the Bayán, in two volumes, the Persian Bayán and the Arabic Bayán. Others include the the Seven Proofs, the Book of Names, a further nine commentaries on the Quran, and the 'Five Grades' (Kitábi-i-panj sha'n), Quranic-style verses in Arabic, prayers, homilies, commentaries, and letters and talismans. (See the facts and figures below for some details) The Qayyúmu'l-asmá, a commentary on the Chapter of Joseph in which the Báb provides proofs of his prophethood. It was revealed for the first Letter of the Living in Arabic in May 1844 was copied and circulated among the Babis. Here are a few excerpts from the 1976 compilation of his writings in English. "Become as true brethren in the one and indivisible religion of God, free from distinction, for verily God desireth that your hearts should become mirrors unto your bretheren in the Faith, so that you find yourselves reflected in them and they in you. This is the true Path of God, the Almighty..." (Page 56) "...Verily, Christ is Our Word which We communicated unto Mary; and let no one say what the Christians term as 'the third of three', inasmuch as it would amount to slandering the Remberance Who, as decreed in the Mother Book, is invested with supreme authority. Indeed God is but one God, far be it from His glory that there should be aught else besides Him....Verily I am none other but the servant of God and His Word, and none but the first one to bow down in supplication..." (Page 61) "...Consider how at the time of the appearance of every Revelation, those who open their hearts to the Author of that Revelation recognize the Truth, while the hearts of those who fail to apprehend the Truth are straitened by reason of their shutting themselves out from Him. However, openess of heart is bestowed by God upon both parties alike. God desireth not to straiten the haert of anyone, be it even an ant, how much less the heart of a superior creature, except when he suffereth himself to be wrapt in veils, for God is the Creator of all things..." (Excerpt from the Kitáb-i-Asmá, Page 133) Bahá'u'lláh Some 15,000 Persian and Arabic writings known as "Tablets" have been identified as by Bahá'u'lláh. Many are written partly in Arabic and partly in Persian. Some "Tablets" are letters to individual Bahá´ís while others are major works dealing with religious doctrine, Bahá'u'lláh's claims, Bahá´í law, social and moral teachings, prayers, poems, and visionary accounts of Bahá'u'lláh's mystical experiences. Only a fraction of these have been translated into English. (see below for details of the more known works.) In the early days, Bahá'u'lláh would write a Tablet in honour of an individual with his own hand, but after being poisoned in about 1865, the shaking of his hands meant that he rarely wrote the Tablets himself. As a rule the words of Bahá'u'lláh were written down as he dictated them. For forty years, Mirza Aqa Jan served as Bahá'u'lláh's amanuensis, recording Bahá'u'lláh's utterances with pen and paper. Once the good copy was made and checked, Bahá'u'lláh sometimes authenticated it with one of his seals. 'Abdul-Bahá was another of those who helped with transcribing and copying the Tablets by hand for others. At times they could not keep up with Bahá'u'lláh's verses. Another transcriber was the calligrapher, Mishkin-Qalam who created the design of the "Greatest Name". Only the trusted were present when Bahá'u'lláh revealed these verses. "...and the words streamed forth as in copious rain. Methought the door, the wall, the carpet, the ceiling, the floor and the air were all perfumed and illumined. They all had been transformed, each and every one, into ears and were filled with a spirit of joy and ecstasy..." Recorded by Haydar-'Ali in the presence of Bahá'u'lláh during the time of revelation. (The Revelation of Bahá'u'lláh by Adib Taherzadeh, page 29.) Some Scripture -facts and figures The Writings of the Báb 1844 The Qúyyumu'l-asmá' (a commentary on the Chapter of Joseph in the Quran) in Arabic. Tahirih translated this into Persian. Excerpts in English in Selections from the Writings from the Báb (Compiled by the Universal House of Justice, Haifa, 1976). 1844  -46 Eleven more commentaries on the Quranic verses or Islamic traditions. The most famous is the Chapter of Kawthar, composed for Váhid. Thirteen treatises on theological and legal issues, including meditations, homiliies and collections of prayers. 1847  -48 The Persian Bayán, and the shorter Arabic Bayán written by the Báb while in prison in Mákú. The Báb considered both unfinished, to be completed by the next Messanger of God (Considered by Bahá´ís to be Bahá'u'lláh's "The Book of Certitude" (1862)). Among the laws in the Bayán, one was a new calendar which Bahá'u'lláh adapted and Bahá´ís follow today. A. L. M. Nicholas (a French consular official in Iran and orientalist) translated both versions of the Bayán into French. (Excerpts in English of the Persian in Selections from the Writings from the Báb) The Writings of Bahá'u'lláh c.1853 c.1854 Rashh-i-Amá "The Sprinkling of the Cloud" - a short poem of exaltation composed in the Siyah-Chal prison. Bahá'u'lláh - Tablet of All Food (in Arabic), for a man of culture and knowledge, was a commentary on the verse in the Qur'an concerning food and the children of Israel, apparently revealed in answer to the Jew's assertion that the laws of Islam did not conform to Jewish Law. Bahá'u'lláh elaborates that the spiritual worlds of God are infinite as are the meanings of the word "food" and goes on to discuss some of these meanings and worlds. 1854 Bahá'u'lláh - The arabic mystical work, Ode of the Dove, written in Kurdistan. c.1855 Bahá'u'lláh - The mystical work The Four Valleys, (in Persian) describing four stages of spiritual life. c.1855 Bahá'u'lláh - The ecstatic poem Halih-halih yá bishárat, "Glad Tidings" (in Persian). c.1858 Bahá'u'lláh - The Hidden Words (in Persian & Arabic); a collection of counsels on the spiritual and the ethical. 1862 Bahá'u'lláh - The Book of Certitude, (in Persian). Bahá'u'lláh's foremost theological book in which the purpose of religion is argued. c.1863 Bahá'u'lláh - The Lawy-i-Huriyyah (Tablet of the Maiden) (Arabic). Recounts a visionary meeting with the Maid of Heaven. c.1863 Bahá'u'lláh - The Seven Valleys (in Persian, translated into many languages); Bahá'u'lláh's best known mystical work. 1863 Bahá'u'lláh - The Tablet of the Holy Mariner (Arabic and Persian, translated into many languages). Visionary rhymed prose concerning the dwellers of the 'ark' of God's cause. c.1863 Bahá'u'lláh - The Book of the River (Persian), comparing the power of God to that of an irresistible river. 1863 Bahá'u'lláh - The Tablet of the Bell (Arabic). Its pulsating rhythm lends itslef to ecstatic chanting. It declares that 'the Day of God' has come. c.1864 Bahá'u'lláh - The Wondrous Book (Mostly in Persian). Apologia to a Bábí who rejected Bahá'u'lláh's claims. c.1865 Bahá'u'lláh - The Tablet of Ahmad (Arabic, translated in most Bahá´í prayerbooks) a powerful poetic prayer Bahá´í's often recite for comfort, for a believer from Yazd. "Lo the nightingale of Paradise..." c.1869 Bahá'u'lláh - A tablet to Queen Victoria (Arabic). c.1869 Bahá'u'lláh - A tablet to Pope Pius IX (Arabic). c.1871 Bahá'u'lláh - The Lawh-i-Qad ihtaraqa'l-mukhlisún, generally known as The Fire Tablet (Arabic). Evocative rhymed verse. c.1873 Bahá'u'lláh - The The Most Holy Book (Kitábi-i-Aqdas) (Arabic), Bahá'u'lláh's book of laws. c.1873 Bahá'u'lláh - The Bishárát (Glad-Tidings) (Lawh-i-Nidá) announces 15 glad-tidings, such as the abolition of the Holy War, obedience to one's government, universal education for all children, the encouragement of a universal auxillary language... (Translated into English in "Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh", 1978, Universal House of Justice.) c.1873 Bahá'u'lláh - The Ishráqát (Splendours) (in Persian and Arabic) was written for a Bahá´í coppersmith. The tablet includes nine 'splendours' from Bahá'u'lláh's teachings: religion is a stronghold for social order and must be supported by those in authority, Kings are manifestations of God's power, God's Law brings life to the world, praiseworthy deeds of the Bahá´ís promote Bahá'u'lláh's Cause best, a government has responsibilities to its citizens, the unity of humanity is stressed, the need for a universal language to promote this unity, the importance of parenthood, the responsibilites of the Universal House of Justice and aspects of Bahá´í ethics are mentioned. (Translated into English in "Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh") ?1875 Bahá'u'lláh - A commentary on the Surah of the Sun, in the Qur'an, written for a Muslim divine of Akka in which he talks of "the multitude of truths which the garments of words can never contain". The theme of the tablet was to show how vast God is and that no interpretation could exhaust divine revelation. 1879 Bahá'u'lláh - The Tablet of the Land of Bá (in Persian) composed on the occasion of 'Abdul-Bahá's visit to Beirut, in praise of 'Abdul-Bahá. (In English in "Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh") 1879 Bahá'u'lláh - The The Tablet of the Proof, composed shortly after the execution of Hájí Siyyid Muhammad-Hasan, is addressed to one of the Persian clerics responsible for this. Bahá'u'lláh compares him to the Jewish leaders who were responsible for the crucifixion of Christ and Bahá'u'lláh predicts his downfall. (In English in "Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh") ? 1889 Bahá'u'lláh - The The Most Holy Tablet (also known as The Tablet to the Christians) (in Arabic) was probably written for a Bahá´í of Syrian Christian background. It addresses all Christians and asks them not to be like the Jewish Pharisees who awaited the advent of the Messiah but were unable to recognize Jesus when he came. (In English in "Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh") c.1890 Bahá'u'lláh - The Tablet of Masqúd. Written in the form of a letter, it deals with a range of themes including the inherent greatness of human nature; justice and the need for an assemblage of rulers to gather together to establish the Lesser Peace; service to the humanity... (In English in "Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh") c.1890 Bahá'u'lláh - The Tablet to Siyyid-i-Mihdíy-y-i-Dahají. Refers to Bahá´í teaching activity and the need for Bahá´ís to be godly in their deeds and to avoid creating strife. (In English in "Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh") 1891 Bahá'u'lláh - The Tablet of the World (in Persian) Its major themes are: Bahá'u'lláh's Message; Iran which had now 'sunk to the lowest level of degradation'; that Bahá´ís should be prudent in their conduct and all should fear God. It praises constitutional monarchy... (In English in "Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh") 1891 Bahá'u'lláh - Tablet to The Times. Composed after the killing of the "Seven Martyrs of Yazd". It includes an address to The Times newspaper of London calling for attention to the plight of the persecuted Bahá'ís in Iran. 1891 Bahá'u'lláh - The Tablet of Carmel. Composed in Arabic during a visit to Mount Carmel (site of the Bahá´í World Centre) in the form of a dialogue of praise between Bahá'u'lláh and the personified mountain. (In English in "Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh") c.1891 Bahá'u'lláh - The Tablet to Vafá. Here Bahá'u'lláh praises faithfulness; states that the worlds of God are countless in number; and writes of the return of prophets, with Bahá'u'lláh's station being that of the Báb 'arrayed in His new attire'.(In English in "Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh") 1891-2 Bahá'u'lláh - The Epistle to the Son of the Wolf. His last major work, which is addressed to a prominent Iranian cleric who persecuted the Bahá´ís. He calls on him to repent, and to ask for God's forgiveness. It outlines Bahá'u'lláh's teachings, cites earlier writings, and presents biblical prophecies which Bahá'u'lláh fulfills. (In English in "Epistle to the Son of the Wolf")